In November 2017, the Town of Waxhaw Residents unseated three incumbent Commissioners with three newcomers who all happen to be women.  This will be the first time that the Town of Waxhaw’s Board of Commissioners will have a majority of women as members.  New comers Tracy Wesolek, Kat Lee, and Brenda McMillon join current members Fred Burrell and Brenda Burns.

Kat Lee and her husband moved to the Waxhaw area in 2004 after leaving their jobs in the DC area in the defense department.  They chose Waxhaw as the place to start and raise their family.  Her children, now 4 and 7, keep Kat busy along with her volunteer work with her church.  What started as teaching a Sunday School class eventually became a seat as a co-director for the K-5 program.  In her quest to support the community where her family is, Kat Lee ran and won one of the three openings for Town Commissioner and was sworn in on December 12, 2017.  Lee remarks, “Waxhaw is the hometown I chose and the hometown my children are growing up in. It is a place I love. But erratic zoning, lack of vision and a willingness to disregard the will of the people plagues our town. Time and again we have seen the rubber stamp mentality of previous commissioners and others in our government place the convenience of developers and the preferences of select groups over the wishes of our residents. I ran for the office of commissioner, and feel blessed to have won and been given this great public trust, because I believe in the duty of all citizens to serve their community, and the duty of the government to serve the people.”

Lee grew up in a small town in Georgia.  She explains, “As a child I grew up outside a small southern town not unlike Waxhaw. And I watched as it grew too big, too fast. Now, here in Waxhaw, I see the same old story playing itself out again. Having seen the devastation poor planning can cause a community, I am prepared to work with our residents and for our residents to move Waxhaw into the future, while preserving the heritage of our very special town.”  She also recognizes how her past professional experience will help her here in Waxhaw.  “Additionally, I have served in the federal government for four years. I served in the Defense Intelligence Agency, as a nuclear programs analyst. Many folks may not think this grants me any additional insight into small town government, but I assure you it does. Working in government, big or small, federal or local, gives one a knowledge of how bureaucracy works, how to work with various departments, each with their own goals and agendas, to accomplish many-faceted tasks. How to think and plan strategically. And it reminds you that you serve something greater than yourself.”

Lee intends to focus on making life better for the families of Waxhaw including expanding town parks and libraries as well as continuing on focusing on making Waxhaw a safe and fun place to live.  She knows that she has a lot to accomplish in the next 4 years and that most of it won’t be easy.  “The difficulties I see Waxhaw facing, as I have already said, stem mainly from a lack of forethought when planning development projects, and a disregard for the wishes and needs of the community as a whole, in preference to the desires of small groups. During this most recent election, none of the incumbents even made it into the top five of voters’ choices. That says a lot about the way Waxhaw feels about its government. The previous board of commissioners lost the faith of the people. And it is up to the new board to earn it back. But we cannot do this by dictating to the people from on high. We must instead listen to them as equals, as valued members of our community. And we must prove to them that we put aside our personal agendas in service to their needs. Communication will be key in achieving this. We must not engage in back room meetings and closed door conferences. We must not be afraid to discuss difficult topics in the open, respectfully and cooperatively with our residents.  We must make as much information available to the public as we can, because a well-informed public is the greatest partner for a government of the people, by the people, and for the people.”